The camp is key in the selection of the 22-man roster which will represent Canada in the 2013 Ivan Hlinka tournament, which runs Aug. 5-10 in Breclav, Czech Republic, and Piestany, Slovakia.

The 42 players invited were chosen by Ryan Jankowski, head scout for the men’s Program of Excellence, with input from head coach Dale Hunter, assistant coaches Dominique Ducharme and D.J. Smith, and the Program of Excellence management group, including Mark Hunter.

"These players are the cream of the crop of under-18 talent in Canada, and it’s going to be exciting to see them battle for 22 roster spots,” Jankowski said in a Hockey Canada press release. "As it is every year, there were some tough decisions to get down to 42, and they will be even tougher decisions to finalize the roster."

Virtanen, the first overall pick in the 2011 WHL Bantam Draft, registered 16 goals and 18 assists for 34 points in 62 games in his first full WHL season. He added two goals and six points in 15 playoff games. He represented Team Pacific at the 2013 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

The Abbotsford, BC native is considered a top prospect in the 2014 NHL Draft.